


The Beast You've Made of Me

by ophelie



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Bellamort, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-07-31
Updated: 2013-07-31
Packaged: 2017-12-21 23:25:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/906189
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ophelie/pseuds/ophelie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"I expect you tonight, as usual," he wiped the blood from her split lip, "I hope you will learn that the Dark Lord is not always this merciful, my dear. Oh and do try to clean yourself up, Bella. You're bleeding." BELLAMORT.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own nor am I affiliated with Harry Potter in any way. No copyright infringement intended.
> 
> A/N: I started this two years ago on FF.net but as they've started cracking down on filtering, I thought it best to give it a new home. I hope you enjoy! x

 

"Insolence!" Voldemort shouted, firing a Cruciatus Curse at Lucius Malfoy. He yelped and fell to the ground writhing, but the Dark Lord paid him no attention. "Could not  _one_  of you secure the boundaries? Or did you plan to besmirch my name with your  _stupidity_? Outsmarted by a house-elf..." He laughed darkly and surveyed the small group of Death Eaters on the bench before him.

Lucius, who had by then recovered from his 'punishment', was brushing the dust off of his robes. His nose was gashed and a purplish bruise had begun to form around his left eye. Draco did not dare meet the Dark Lord's eyes and had hung his head with a mixture of shame and fear. Narcissa held her son's hand, comfortingly, as a mother would. She too hung her head, but unlike her son, she had closed her eyes and, had it not been for the steady stroking of Draco's hand, Voldemort might have mistaken her calm demeanor as sleep.

His gaze hung on the final person left in the room: Bellatrix. She sat with her hand crossed in her lap, her talon-like fingernails grasping at the fabric of her dress. Her hair was disheveled and matted and her face was splattered with a thin layer of dirt. Yet, unlike the Malfoys, she dared to look upon her master's face. His eyes bore into hers and he searched for an answer as to why they had lost. He could not fathom how  _she_  of all people would let the boy and his friends escape, how  _she_  could lose her wand to a  _house-elf_ , how  _she_  could fail him as she did. She couldn't either.

"Out of all of you," he spat, still staring directly at her, "I am most disappointed in  _you,_  Bellatrix. As much as I would like to blame Lucius for this folly, I must admit that it was  _you_  who lost your wand,  _you_ who let them escape... and I must punish you accordingly."

Bellatrix did not look surprised; she knew that it was her who had let the Dark Lord down the most and that she deserved to be punished. Somehow, the mudblood had retrieved the Sword of Gryffindor, an item that was  _supposed_ to be locked up safely in her vault. She knew that she could not keep this from her master, for he would be even angrier if she did not mention it to him. But before she could muster up the courage tell him of the theft, he spoke again.

"Lucius, take your family and go. I wish to speak with your sister-in-law  _alone._ "

Narcissa squeezed her sister's knee, seeming to tell her,  _It'll be alright._  Bellatrix wanted to scoff- his disappointment in her was twenty times more painful than any punishment she may receive- but she bit her tongue and nodded, patting Narcissa's hand in reply. One by one, the Malfoys exited the hall. Finally, Voldemort turned to her.

"Bella," he spoke.  _He knows._ "Is there something you wish to tell me?"

The tone of his voice was enough to send chills down even the bravest man's spine. If looks could kill, she was sure she'd be long gone. She could feel his hands around her neck, squeezing until her air flow was cut and she was dead. Instinctively, she grasped her throat, only to discover that it was just her imagination- for now.

"Master," she choked, "I am sorry, the mudblood she- she had the sword. I do not know how, I do not know why! If they have  _that_ , then maybe they- they-"

"Silence!" He slapped her, drawing blood from her lip, "Do you think that I am here for your pathetic apologies and excuses?" Silence. "I asked you a question, Bellatrix! Didn't your mother ever teach you to respect your superiors?"

"Master, I-" she drifted off, the sting of his words surpassing the sting of his hand.

"Well, Bella?"

"No... you are not here for that, but I-"

He slapped her again, causing her to gasp sharply. "Do. Not. Question. Me," he breathed, his face inches away from her own. " _Crucio,_ " he breathed, the spell hitting Bellatrix with great force.

But she did not scream, she did not writhe; she simply fell to the ground and lay there, bracing herself for another blow. Her eyes were closed and her chest was heaving; she could not bare to look at her master after she had shamed him in such a way. His footsteps creaked on the hardwood floor, and as they neared her limp body, she could not help but tense up and ready her body for another curse. But it did not come. Instead, he bent down and brushed the sweaty tendrils of hair from her face.

"I expect you tonight, as usual," he wiped the blood from her split lip, "I hope you will learn that the Dark Lord is not always this merciful, my dear. Oh and do try to clean yourself up, Bella. You're bleeding."

Bellatrix could hear the menace in his voice, but she did not dare question it. She was lucky that she had only endured one bout of the Cruciatus Curse and a bloody lip. If Lucius were in her place, she suspected he'd be a lot worse off.

"Until tonight," Voldemort stroked her cheek and rose to his feet.

She waited until she heard the sound of apparition before she opened her eyes again.  _Until tonight._

* * *

"Lucius, stop squirming! You're only going to make it worse!"

Narcissa Malfoy was currently attending to her husbands wounds, and the mixture of his fidgeting and her thoughts were adding to the difficulty of the task. If the Dark Lord had done this much damage to his face, she couldn't even imagine how her sister would look when he was finished with her.  _Bella..._  She couldn't fathom how Bellatrix could be beaten and abused, shot down, tortured and assaulted and still love the man with every fibre of her being. He was going to be the death of her, Narcissa was sure of it.

As if on cue, the Dark Lord's voice followed by what sounded like a slap resonated through the hallway. She winced inwardly, before setting down the rag she was using, now soiled with her husband's blood, and moved to close the kitchen door.

"It'll be alright," Lucius broke the silence, "Bellatrix is a strong woman, she'll- she'll...be alright."

And for the first time in what seemed like years, Narcissa wept. She wept for her son, who was dragged into a world of murder and death, who was scared out of his wits and who she prayed for every day to see another sunrise. She wept for her husband, who had gotten them into this mess in the first place, who she loved more than any other man in the world and who she was frightened for. She wept for her sister, who was irrevocably in love with the one man who would never love her back, who killed without mercy and who believed that the Dark Lord could do no wrong. But mostly, she wept for herself, for the fear of losing her family, for the fear that she would die at any moment and for the fear that she wouldn't. Besides, she was due for a good cry.

"Cissa, it'll be okay," Lucius scooped up his wife into his arms and held her close to his chest.

"You don't know that, Lucius," she whispered, calming down, "Who knows? He could walk through that door at any moment and kill us all. Bella could be lying dead in our entrance hall and we can't do anything to stop it! Draco..."

"Is upstairs, safe," he finished.  _For now._  "It'll be alright, Narcissa.  _She'll_ be alright.  _We'll_ be alright."

Defeated, Narcissa quieted. Lucius kissed her softly on the head, and rubbed the small of her back, glad that she was finally calming down. He hated to admit it, but he too was scared of what the Dark Lord may do to his sister-in-law. Sure, he wasn't particularly fond of her (she wasn't particularly fond of him, either), but she was his wife's sister, the only family she had left. Their family couldn't afford to lose her, no matter how obsessed with her master she may be.

"Thank you, Lucius," Narcissa forced a smile.

"You're welcome, love," he smiled back and kissed her. The two remained in a loving embraced, enveloped in themselves and finally, at peace until  _slam!_

"What was that?" Narcissa asked, startled. The floorboards leading to the kitchen creaked and the knob turned. "Lucius..."

But it was not an enraged Lord Voldemort that waltzed through the kitchen doorway, but instead a disgruntled Bellatrix- and she was on a warpath.

"Bella, your lip! And your cheek! You're bruising and-"

"Cissy, I'm fine! Lucius, give me your wand."

"My-" Lucius started.

"Yes! Your wand! Now!"

Not wanting to enrage her more, Lucius obligingly handed over his wand.

" _Episkey_ ,"Bellatrix mumbled, and her lip was healed. She threw the wand back to Lucius with a great force, causing the man to jump and catch it.

"Bella," Narcissa spoke, "Are you alright? I mean, if you need some place to stay tonight, I'm sure we could let you have one of the guest rooms and-"

"I'm fine, Cissy!" Bellatrix yelled. Realising that her sister had only been trying to help, she attempted to console her, "Really, Cissy. I'm fine. Thanks for the offer, but I already have accommodations for the night."

Narcissa stared at her sister in disbelief. After all that the man had done to her, she was still going to go back to him!

"Lucius, love, could you give us a moment?"

Not willing to deny his wife time with her sister, he nodded.

"I'll see you later," Lucius spoke softly, kissing Narcissa's hair. She smiled back, and he left.

"Bella," she said, turning to her sister, "After all of this? You're still going to...to...?"

"Of course, Cissy! He is the Dark Lord!"

"He just can't do anything wrong in your eyes, can he? He could probably kill Lucius and I and you wouldn't even second guess him!" Narcissa's anger had risen to the point that the soft-spoken woman was now yelling.

"Cissy, you know I-"

"No I don't know, Bellatrix! I don't know what you would or wouldn't do anymore!"

Bellatrix winced at her sister's use of her full name; she'd only ever used it when she was angry with her.

"He doesn't love you, Bella," she continued, softer this time, "He  _can't_ love you. He never will."

Bellatrix's features hardened. Her mouth was thrown ajar and her eyes seemed to pop out of their sockets.

"How. Dare. You!" she screamed, "How  _dare_  you speak of him in that way! How  _dare_  you act like you know how he feels or who he is! He is the most powerful man in the whole of the wizarding world, in the  _entire_  world and you act like he's  _Lucius_ , or something! You don't know him!"

"Apparently, neither do you," Narcissa retorted, her voice now cold. Bellatrix attempted to grab her hand, to do  _something_  to try and make her sister understand, but Narcissa shoved her away. "No, don't  _touch_  me. We'll talk when you've gained some sense! Until then..."

And with that, Narcissa left the room, leaving a stunned Bellatrix behind.

* * *

"Is she-" Lucius started.

"I...don't want to talk about it. I'll go get Draco, let's go out to dinner," Narcissa replied.

Lucius nodded, and went to get his coat.

"She'll never understand," Narcissa whispered to herself, "She'll never understand."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "It was true that Bellatrix did not mind his name-calling, or his abuse- that was who he was and she would not change it for the world- but she wanted more. She was too quickly tiring of the same routine: she was servant, he was master, they'd have sex, she would leave. It was not enough."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own nor am I affiliated with Harry Potter in any way. No copyright infringement intended.
> 
> A/N: I have four more complete chapters after this to post before I start digging out the old typewriter and adding some new material, but hopefully this is sufficient for now!

"She is late, Nagini."

Voldemort tapped his untrimmed fingernails along the base of the table. He was not furious, he just could not grasp why the woman was not prompt, as usual.

"You forget, my Lord, that she does not have a wand. She cannot simply apparate into your bedroom," Nagini replied, obviously annoyed with her master's anxious demeanour.

"Ah, yes, Nagini. Thank you for being so insightful."

"I am only trying to help, my Lord," the snake gave what appeared to be a shrug before slithering out of the door.

"Bella, Bella, Bella... what am I going to do with you?" Voldemort stared out of the window of his study, watching as the sun fell over the forest surrounding Riddle Manor.

In all honesty, he hated the muggle inhabitance with every fibre of his being, but his only other choice would be to stay at Malfoy Manor and after their skirmish earlier that day, he did not want to even set foot in the place. It was still unfathomable how his Bella could fail him the way she did. He had not waited sixteen years to kill Harry Potter only to find that she had let him escape. He might have expected something like this from Lucius, but never her. He was brought out of his trance by a knock at the door and, realising that it was probably Bellatrix, he moved to let her in.

"You're late, Bella."

"I am aware my Lord, but I have no wand and I simply could not-"

"Ah, yes. That is exactly what Nagini said."

"The snake, my Lord?"

"Of course, Bellatrix!" he snapped, "Speaking of which..." He reached into the pocket of his robe and produced a wand. It was not her original, but it would certainly do.

Bellatrix's face lit up, "Thank you, my Lord! Master, thank you!" She did not know how she could repay him for his kindness, especially after the disservice she had done him earlier that evening.

"There are ways, Bella, remember this."

Bellatrix looked up at him puzzled as to what he was referring to, but realised that he had probably read her mind. Ah, yes, Legilimency.

"Have you eaten?" Voldemort asked, ushering her into the foyer and shutting the door behind them.

"Master, Narcissa put me out and-"

"That is not the answer to my question, Bellatrix."

She seemed to always find excuses for even the most mundane of questions, and as Voldemort was becoming increasingly irritable, he could not tolerate them today. If she didn't stop soon, he wasn't sure what he would be forced to do.

"No, my Lord. I have not," she replied defeated. She was lucky that she was still invited into his bed after the day's events; she did not want to push him.

She half expected him to sit her down at his dining room table and allow her to gorge her face in delicious food. Hell, even a slice of toast would be acceptable to soothe the hunger she was feeling. But the Dark Lord did neither of these, and instead grasped her by the arms and turned her to face him.

"Good," he sneered, his nails digging into her flesh, "Maybe now you will learn that you deserved to be punished far more than I chose to punish you. Apparently, you sister has made sure of that." He paused, observing the expression on the woman's face, "You may eat later, if you behave."

She nodded and followed him up the stairs, her new wand grasped tightly in her hand. The fact that he hadn't tortured her already was promising, but something inside of Bellatrix felt that the whole situation seemed off. You're being ridiculous! she thought to herself.

Voldemort gave a low chuckle, and assuming that he had read her thoughts again, she blushed and followed him into the bedroom. Shutting the door behind her, he made quick of his work. Their clothing vanished and he drank in the sight of her. She was bruised, but he was too caught up in the moment to punish her for not fully healing herself. After all, that would just add to the purple and brown tattoos that littered her body.

"Bella," he spoke, his tone almost primal.

"Master," she replied, her eyelids drooping.

He swooped down like a snake to a mouse, devouring her whole. She was his plaything, his little whore. He could beat her to a pulp and she would still come back that night, begging for him, wanting him. She was his most loyal, his right-hand woman and she'd do anything to please him. That's exactly the way Voldemort liked it.

She scratched her nails down the length of his back, and though he could not see it, he was sure that she had drawn blood.

"Whore," he spat grabbing hair hair in his fist and slamming her head into the headboard. He was sure she did not mind, after all, she'd do anything to be close to him.

It was true that Bellatrix did not mind his name-calling, or his abuse- that was who he was and she would not change it for the world- but she wanted more. She was too quickly tiring of the same routine: she was servant, he was master, they'd have sex, she would leave. It was not enough.

"Not enough, Bellatrix?" his cold voice interrupted her thoughts, "Ah, you forget that you leave your mind open, my dear. I can hear you, I can see you." With a great force, he threw her from the bed. "I am not enough for you, Bellatrix?"

"No, my Lord, you are! I am sorry, I-"

"SILENCE!" he screamed, reaching off of the mattress and pulling her hair so that she looked at him. "I believe that we are finished for the evening."

"My Lord, I am sorry!"

"Bellatrix..." he warned, and she knew not to press him any further.

She dressed in silence, willing herself not to cry, ashamed that again she had disappointed him.

"Perhaps tomorrow night, you will learn to behave yourself," Voldemort said, the ice in his voice still apparent.

"My Lord, I have no place to go."

"Find somewhere, Bella. Now- get out of my sight."

With a sigh and a look of longing in his direction, she disapparated. The pop of the magic had startled Nagini, who was returning from her nightly hunt.

"She is gone? Already?" the snake hissed, curling herself around the baseboard of the bed.

"She has displeased me, Nagini. Do not press the subject."

"I am simply asking a question, Master. I only want what is best for you."

"And pray tell, Nagini, what might that be?"

"You care for her, my Lord," the snake spoke, already on thin ice.

"I care for no one but myself, Nagini. She is a plaything, nothing more."

"There is something more, my Lord-" And suddenly, the snake was thrown back from the foot of the bed and into the dressing table. She hissed wildly and dared to bare her fangs.

"You ignorant animal! Get out! Now!"

Nagini glared at him before slithering out of the room.

"There is nothing more," Voldemort said to himself, "Nothing more."

After what had seemed like the hundredth time she'd knocked on the door, a pyjama-clad Lucius came to her rescue.

"Bellatrix? I though you were-"

"Lucius, do not question me. It is pouring rain and I've been out here for twenty minutes. Let. Me. In." she snapped, drenched and irritable.

"Bella?" A soft voice from behind Lucius called, "You're soaked! Come inside!"

Narcissa led her sister into the foyer where she could properly dry herself before going upstairs. Bellatrix hoped that the dim light would hide her face, because she was sure that the Dark Lord had done a number to it, and she did not want her sister to condemn her even more.

"Why'd you come back?" Narcissa asked, her voice filling the empty room, "Oh god Bella, your face!" She illuminated her wand to better survey the damage, "Why do you let him do this to you, Bella?" She sighed and stood, moving towards the door, "Stay put, I'll be right back."

Bellatrix did not like to be taken care of, especially by her younger sister, but in the state the she was in, she knew that she would not be able to do it herself. Narcissa returned shortly, holding a wet rag and a vial of some kind of topical solution.

"This will sting, Bella," she warned, playing the rag onto her sister's face. But Bellatrix did not flinch or gasp; she simply sat there, dazed. "You can have the guest suite, I've had it ready for you just in case well, you know..."

"Yes, Cissy. I know," Bellatrix retorted.

She expected Narcissa to tell her "I told you so", or maybe even leave her out in the storm; she didn't expect her sister to care for her after she had been rejected by her master. Perhaps tomorrow night, you will learn to behave yourself. His voice rang in her ears, promising her that she was still guaranteed a place in his bed tomorrow. She didn't expect her sister to understand, she didn't expect her to agree or to keep quiet, but it seemed that Narcissa understood why Bellatrix had to go back to him, or at least, she hoped she did.

"Cissy," she started, breaking the silence, "I-"

"I know, Bella, I know."


End file.
